Tirta was born on a non-important day in Ashan in Ne'haer to an unimportant couple. There were friends and family there, but they too were unimportant. She was just another person joining the clan of seafaring misfits. Her father, Trevor, was a mixed raced man whom had also been born to a human mother and Biqaj father. Her mother, Sybil, was full-blooded Biqaj that had fallen for Trevor's appealing gentlemanly behavior and quick wit. They had no idea what to expect from her initially, and had not even truly decided upon a name for her as she came into the world. It was only after her appearance to their friends did she receive her name. A young boy, a few years older than she, had begun to learn to speak common. The way she peaked out of the swaddling reminded him of a turtle. He pointed and smiled, saying 'Tirta, tirta, tirta!' the entire time. Despite his inability to say 'turtle', the name made the baby girl smile.
From then on, she became Tirta.
From the beginning, she was a very happy and bright girl. She learned things quickly from those willing to teach her. She spent many nights staring at the stars while she lay in the hammock on her parents ship, the roll of the waves swinging her to sleep. The constellations changed with each passing season. The moon waxed and waned over the city as she grew older. When her parents went out to sea, she had often been left behind with friends in her younger arcs. When she was finally able to stand and dance on land, they allowed her to come sailing with them so she might attain her sea-legs. The first few days of her first trip were spent being jostled around the deck by the waves. Then she figured out that bending her knees and swaying with the roll of the ocean helped steady her. The arc passed and she was handed her first fishing rod. Although the expectation was low, she was supposed to help catch meals for the family. She would lean over the side of the boat for breaks a trial, casting and recasting her line in attempts to catch a fish. Finally she caught a fish, even if it was one of the smaller species that the Biqaj knew of. Yet, she feasted on it that evening with the biggest smile on her face. With her sea-legs and fishing skills in progress, she realized that she was finally becoming a true Biqaj. Her heart from then on belonged to the water.
Now she was entitled to her surname, Qau'fnaj.
When not spending her time with her parents on the boat, she was playing with the other children in the city of Ne'haer. Together they would run up and down the streets, causing all sorts of trouble. She originally ran with a group of ruffians that made it their mission to be trouble makers. They would have mock sword fights in the yards with thick sticks, smacking one another until their skin was black and blue. The bruises were trophies of a fight well fought. Since she was smaller than many of the full-blooded Biqaj boys and girls, she was never a leader. Instead, she seemed to be the sneaky right-hand. Her policy was to speak softly and carry a bigger stick as a loyal protector of the 'captain'. If she waited in the shadows, maybe one day she would be strong enough and loud enough to be the captain.
One day she found her group picking on a rather rotund boy. She had seen him around the city hustling with his older brother. He was a chef in the making as far as she knew while his brother was the baker. Their ring leader, Syul, sat back sucking on some candy that had been pilfered from the boy while the others proceeded to ensure he remained on the ground. What she saw was wrong, and no matter how loyal she had been, she refused loyalty to someone that did not protect the weak. Tirta picked up the biggest stick she could find and, as one of the deadliest children with a stick, chased her group off. The bag of candy was left behind and the bloodied boys went screaming down the alley. Only Syul vowed revenge for her betrayal. Despite going against everything she thought she had believed in, Tirta remained loyal to the chef boy from that day on. Tom Dandy became one of her good friends after that, and her love affair with candy began.
Candy. Her sweets addiction developed as she spent time with Tom. He was her supplier, and she, his guinea pig. New candy creations were always sampled by the young woman. She loved the bright swirling colors of suckers and the fruity flavors of poppable candies.
Lemon,
orange,
blueberry,
raspberry,
lime,
grape, and
strawberry. No matter the flavor, she had to have it. Despite having Tom as a supplier, it was never enough. She began finding ways to sneak 'samples' from stores. Thievery in candy shoppes began to run rampant, and the store owners began to call her the candy thief. She was allowed to get away with it for a time, but after a while, her bad behavior came with a cost. They started throwing her out of shoppes and preventing her from entering the store at all. Without Tom, her sources of candy would have been dry. So, she elected to go to their suppliers. Tirta would monitor the shipments of candy come in from far off places, planning small heists to run off with crates of candy. To her great delight, she began drowning in sugar.
Now in her early twenties, she had pulled herself away from her clan to start her own life. That, and her bad behavior and thieving ways had practically gotten her ousted from the clan. Although her parents loved her dearly, they could not condone her methods. So, she took out a loan and got herself a small sloop to live on and work out of. She called it the Sweet Tooth, a fitting name for an up-and-coming pirate with a candy addiction. Although she was widely known to be the procurer of sweet treats, little action was taken against her. She could never explain why that happened, but she figured her raids were small enough many of the merchants did not care. That, and reporting a lost crate of candy seemed a bit excessive in comparison to great treasures and expensive items. Maybe it was the lack of recognition and the desire to become known as a true pirate that helped her next relationship flourish.
She only ever knew him as Hare. While walking on the beach she saw a man playing with water in a way she never imagined. His movements were fluid and the water was pulled from the waves into the area to swirl around him. She was so fascinated she found herself gawking at him. When he finally noticed, the water seemed to become electrified. It spun as if it were angry or afraid around him, ready to attack. She had assured him that she would not report him to any authorities, and was only curious as to what he was doing. He did not say that trial, but invited her to come watch again soon. Tirta went almost daily to the same spot to watch him practice. Trials passed and he began to open up to her. It was a domain magic known as Defiance and he was classified as a Defier. Inside of him was an entity known as the Spark, a gift from his mentor when he was initiated into the art. The seasons passed and finally she found herself enough courage to ask him to initiate her. He accepted, but the next step was something that had never anticipated.
The day of her initiation was a rather unimportant day. The sky was overcast and the water was unusually choppy as the wind had picked up. A storm was heading this way as far as the city could tell. She went down to the same location that she met Hare. He was waiting for her, already knee deep in the ocean. Tirta stripped down completely as she was bade to do and joined him. She had not prepared for that day as Hare had not given her an assignment. He had just told her to show up and he would take care of the rest. Unknown to Tirta, he had already given a portion of his Spark to the water. Now, it was time to make her vulnerable. The two walked further out into the ocean, Hare a step behind Tirta. Without warning, he grabbed her by the neck and forced her forward. She became unbalanced in the deeper water and found herself completely submerged. There he held her.
Drowning is an experience that no one will understand unless they have gone through it. Tirta had wrapped her fingers around his arms, trying to pull herself free of his grip. Bubbles of precious oxygen floated past her lips as she struggled. The sand underneath her kept slipping between her toes and she was unable to find purchase to stand and fight back properly. More previous bubble floated to the surface. Her lungs began to tighten and scream for air and her body began to tighten as she struggled. Her only thoughts turned to Hare's betrayal. Was she being used as a willing sacrifice for some strange ritual? She certainly did not want to die. Not like this. The bubbles of air got smaller and she cheeks tightened as she tried to hang on to the last few previous trills of oxygen. Eventually her body beat her mind and forced her to open her mouth in attempts to suck in air. She expected ocean water to flood her lungs. Instead, a warmth entered her and the ocean around her seemed to calm and sink around her, just enough to put her face above water. While gasping for air, Hare released her. The Spark and the element of water had accepted her, saving her life with an expectation that she was forever marked by the raw element of fluid. Hare continued to explain the aspect of vulnerability to the initiation, which is why he had not forewarned her about the ritual. Together, they exited the ocean where Tirta noticed that the droplets did not dribble down her skin like they normally did. Instead, the clung to her as if it were a second skin. It felt familiar, right, and particularly warm despite the cool day.
Hare left the next season without even saying goodbye. She spent one more season in Ne'haer, allowing herself to turn 25 arcs before getting on the Sweet Tooth and sailing off into the sunset. For three arcs she traveled Idalos. Only she truly knows which path she took, but she ended up investigating the city of Rhakros, Etzos, Rharne, Andaris, and Viden. In the recent arc, she discovered the pirate city of Almund, Scalvoris, where she currently resides.
Ashan 687 - Ashan 712:
- Tirta was born and remained in Ne'haer during this time. She left shortly after her mentor, Hare, left. She began to life on the open seas and pursued a career in piracy.
1st of Ymiden, 712 - 30th of Ymiden, 712:
- Tirta was at sea on the Sweet Tooth. Her destination was Rhakros.
30th of Ymiden, 712 - 1st of Vhalar, 712:
- Tirta remained in Rhakros, exploring the city and meeting its citizens.
2nd of Vhalar, 712 - 30th of Vhalar, 712:
- Tirta was at sea on the Sweet Tooth. Her destination was Etzos.
31st of Vhalar, 712 - 53rd of Ymiden, 713:
- Tirta remained in Etzos, exploring the city and meeting its citizens.
54th of Ymiden, 713 - 2nd of Saun, 713:
- Tirta was at sea on the Sweet Tooth. Her destination was Rharne.
3rd of Saun, 713 - 44th of Ashan, 715:
- Tirta remained in Rharne, exploring the city and meeting its citizens.
45th of Ashan, 715 - 77th of Ashan, 715:
- Tirta was at sea on the Sweet Tooth. Her destination was Andaris City, Rynmere.
78th of Ashan, 715 - 38th of Saun, 715:
- Tirta remained in Rynmere, exploring the region and meeting its citizens.
39th of Saun, 715 - 35th of Vhalar, 715:
- Tirta was at sea on the Sweet Tooth. Her destination was Viden.
36th of Vhalar, 715 - 2nd of Ymiden, 716:
- Tirta remained in Viden, exploring the region and meeting its citizens.
3rd of Ymiden, 716- 33rd of Ymiden, 716:
- Tirta was at sea on the Sweet Tooth. Her destination was Scalvoris.
34th of Ymiden, 716 - 1st of Vhalar:
- Tirta remained in Scalvoris, exploring the region and meetings its citizens. Eir Crestwind becomes her sailor.
72nd of Vhalar, 716 - 1st of Zi'da, 716:
- Tirta is at sea with Eir Crestwind, initially traveling to Blackbrine. They elect to stop in Andaris City for two days before Tirta decides to head to Etzos once more.
3rd of Zi'da, 716 - 35th of Zi'da, 716:
- Tirta is back at sea on the Sweet Tooth, this time without Eir. Her destination is Etzos.
36th of Zi'da, 716 - Present:
- Tirta lands in Foster's Landing, south of Etzos.